


a caged bird, wings unclipped

by kotaka_kun



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Blue Spirit Zuko (Avatar), Brothels, Crossdressing, Edo Period, Era typical misogyny, Feminization, Iroh (Avatar) is a Good Uncle, M/M, Prostitution, Sex Work, but only vaguely, era atypical brothel practices, sei as in b l u e, sokka might have a bit of a savior complex, uncle iroh just wants zuko to be happy, zuko goes by another name
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-06-11
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:14:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24673681
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kotaka_kun/pseuds/kotaka_kun
Summary: Yoshiwara was certainly living up to its reputation of being the most heavenly red-light district of Edo these days.
Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 68





	a caged bird, wings unclipped

**Author's Note:**

> This is in no way an accurate depiction of Yoshiwara, or any of the red-light districts during the Edo period for that matter. My knowledge is largely superficial, and while I wrote this to reflect a somewhat more ethical approach to what sex work could have been in Yoshiwara, it is not intended to mitigate the dangers and vulnerability that come along in this line of work, back then and today.

Glowing red lanterns lined the street, and the bustle of the crowd this late at night was nothing to scoff at. The wooden slatted windows gave a fine view of the beautiful women sitting on the other side, dressed in delicate kimono and makeup. Their ornate and distinctive hairstyle, reddened lips, and powdered pale skin gave an ethereal air to them, untouchable and yet the most tempting thing you’d ever seen. Men entering the establishments through the noren curtains had a glint in their eye, and the men leaving looked terribly satisfied with themselves. Shamisen music could be heard faintly, each strum seeming more beckoning than the last, and the floral scent of perfume that wafted through the streets seemed to only heighten the illusion of paradise. 

Yoshiwara was certainly living up to its reputation of being the most heavenly red-light district of Edo these days. 

Of course, that didn’t stop Sokka from feeling out of place here. He was only here by invitation from Haru, after all. Sokka wasn’t the kind of person to frequent... places like these. He knew that most people associated the red light district with the most unsavory kinds of men, and he was in no hurry to be lumped together with them. 

And yet, here he was, entering one of the more lavish looking brothels with Haru, and he tried not to appear too out of his element as the owner greeted Haru and the two exchanged pleasantries as though the most beautiful women in the world were not parading around the sleek lacquered halls around them, many of them at the side of patrons that looked like they wanted to devour them whole. 

Haru had said something about saving the owner from some rogues, and that the man had wanted to thank Haru for his troubles by having him visit his establishment for no charge, but this seemed a bit excessive. Two stories high, with winding corridors of shoji doors, that no doubt led to countless rooms for any number of patrons to visit in, the gold that embellished the walls and accented the rails and doors gave the establishment quite the air of class and luxury. Spending the night here must usually cost an arm and a leg.

Haru and the owner -- Iroh seemed to be his name -- continued to discuss what their plans were for the night, and as much as Sokka probably should be paying attention so he’d know what to expect, at the very least, he found himself distracted. 

The hair on the back of his neck stood up as he realized he could feel someone’s gaze lingering on him, and he looked around cautiously, and when he looked up to a balcony on the second floor, he found himself meeting the eyes of the most breathtaking woman he’d ever seen. 

Well, eye. And while her left one was covered by her hair, the rest of her hair was done up like a crown, with a number of jeweled pins making her look like the rising sun itself, and Sokka was helpless to do anything but stare, wide-eyed and slack-jawed. 

Her bright red embroidered kimono shone in a way that the others’ did not, and even under her piercing gaze and indifferent expression, she was positively radiant. The way she held herself made it abundantly clear that she held a high rank, and Sokka felt small just being in her presence. 

And then, without even so much as a polite smile, she turned with a dramatic swishing of her kimono, and glided away down the hall.

“Who is she?” Sokka asked softly, eyes not leaving the retreating figure. Iroh’s gaze followed his, before turning back to Sokka with a knowing look. 

“She is our humble establishment’s most exquisite beauty -- a courtesan of the highest caliber. Many men come asking after her, but she refuses most. Her status of yobidashi allows her to, but please do not be disheartened if she does not agree to meet you.” 

“Meet me?” Sokka asked dumbly. 

“Yes. Your friend here said you’re interested in seeing her.” Iroh gestured to Haru, who wiggled his eyebrows at Sokka suggestively, and Sokka flushed hotly. 

“I- I don’t-”

“Not to worry,” Iroh said with a laugh, “I will tell her you are most respectable. Come, I will show you to a room.” 

“What about Haru-” Sokka looked over at his friend, only to find him being led off in another direction by an attendant.    
“I’ll see you in a few hours!” he called cheerfully, and Sokka forced himself to take a deep breath, and followed Iroh. 

He was led upstairs to a room to wait, and Sokka couldn’t tell if it was a specially decorated and furnished one because he was being given the royal treatment, or if this was just the norm here. It was hard to fathom it being either of those options though. The decor bordered on garish, and Sokka felt even more out of place here than he had outside. 

He shifted around nervously, straightening out any wrinkles in his kimono that he could find. Honestly, why had he let Haru rope him into this? It wasn’t that he was averse to the notion of meeting a high ranking courtesan, but the fact remained that if anyone found out about his visit to this district, there would be talk, and mostly of the undesirable kind. 

Just as he began to wonder if he ought to go and find Iroh and back out of this arrangement, the doors to his room slid open, and there in the hall, stood the woman, two younger attendants at her side. If anything, she was more beautiful up close -- he’d thought her visible eye to be a light brown, but now he could see that it was more golden than anything else. 

“I apologize for having kept you waiting,” she said, and her voice made a shiver run down his spine. Her voice was breathy, and a bit lower than he’d expected, but not unpleasantly so. It was not unlike the wind tussling blades of grass, and he stood and offered a curt bow as she entered and seated herself slowly, careful to not disturb her hair that was very obviously done up with care. “Please, sit. Would you like some tea?”

Sokka opened his mouth to politely decline, but a flick of her wrist sent the attendants off, presumably for tea, so Sokka sat back down and swallowed. 

“Thank you, tea sounds nice.” he managed. 

The commanding air about her was no less prominent now that they were alone, and Sokka fought the urge to fidget. 

“You’re very beautiful.” he said, and the woman offered a polite nod of thanks. “What, uh, what should I call you?” 

“Most call me Sei.” Her lips curled into a smile, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. 

“Sei? That’s a lovely name. So... What do you like to do?” 

She regarded him blankly, and Sokka winced.

“I mean, uh,” He racked his brain for something less idiotic to say, “Do you meet with a lot of people like me?” Her expression remained unchanged, though Sokka could’ve sworn that the corners of her lips turned upwards just the tiniest bit in amusement. 

“Sorry, what I meant to say was, do you have any hobbies?” 

“Outside of my work, I spend my time at in-house tea ceremonies. I also play a variety of games with the others here.” she said evenly. Sokka nodded, only half listening as his ears burned in humiliation. 

“Shall we play a game of Go?” she asked, as the attendants returned with two freshly brewed cups of tea. 

Sokka immediately perked up at that -- Go was a tactician’s game, and he considered himself rather well learned and skilled when it came to such things. 

“That sounds nice.” 

A Go board was brought out, thankfully appearing to be a classic set, and not lacquered or otherwise bedazzled like the rest of the room. 

The room fell silent as they played, save for the soft clack of the stones being placed on the wooden board. Sokka had to admit that Sei was better at this game than he’d expected -- her placements of her pieces were carefully calculated, and it felt as though she were seeing right through his every move, anticipating the territory of the board he was targeting, and thwarting his attack while still defending her ground. 

* * *

In the end, he won by a single point. 

“It seems that you’ve bested me,” she said with the slightest bow of her head as she conceded her defeat. The board was cleared and taken away. 

“You probably could’ve won if you hadn’t slipped up,” Sokka assured her. “You’re very good.” 

“You’re very kind, but I’m clearly no match for someone as skilled as you,” Sei said, and Sokka preened. 

“Well, maybe I could teach you sometime,” he suggested, “And who knows, maybe you’ll be good enough to beat me one day.” 

“Perhaps.” There was an amused twinkle in her eye, and Sokka could feel his cheeks turn pink. The way she regarded him made him doubt his victory... but there was no way that she’d planned her own defeat. Right? Such a small margin was nearly impossible to fabricate. 

“Does this mean you’ll be back to visit me?” she asked, and he realized that it was her way of telling him that their time was up. He hadn’t even realized that that much time had passed, but then again, he had a habit of letting time get away from him when he was invested in a game so heavy in strategizing. 

Sokka considered it, before nodding.

“Sure, I’d be happy to come back.” His heart raced as Sei bowed with a smile. 

“In that case, I will eagerly be awaiting your return.” 


End file.
